We are deeply disappointed that the Concertgebouw has bowed to Zionist pressure and reversed its decision to cancel the Chanukah Concert Foundation’s event featuring Shai Abramson, the chief cantor of the IOF. The Concertgebouw’s initial refusal to provide a stage to a representative of a military perpetrating mass atrocities was a principled position grounded in an understanding of the way Zionist propaganda, including through the arts, sustains a genocidal regime. We are deeply disappointed that the Concertgebouw has bowed to Zionist pressure and reversed its decision to cancel the Chanukah Concert Foundation’s event featuring Shai Abramson, the chief cantor of the IOF. The Concertgebouw’s initial refusal to provide a stage to a representative of -a military perpetrating mass atrocities was a principled position grounded in an understanding of the way Zionist propaganda, including through the arts, sustains a genocidal regime.

This reversal reveals the alarming power of the Dutch Zionist lobby, which disseminates Islamophobic, xenophobic narratives and falsely conflates anti-Zionism with antisemitism. That conflation is not only intellectually dishonest but also dangerous: it fuels and distracts from real antisemitism while silencing legitimate criticism of a genocidal state. As Jews and allies, we reject the weaponization of our identities, histories, and religious practices to repress dissent and artwash genocide.

On the evening of December 14th, we will gather for a protest and vigil outside of the Concertgebouw, during which we will light the first candle of the Chanukah menorah together. We call on all cultural spaces to resist - {intimidation and uphold the cultural boycott of Israel. And we call on the Dutch government to end its complicity in Israel’s genocide of Gaza.